1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an apparatus for the sanitary lifting of a toilet seat. More particularly, the present invention relates to a flexible handle which is connected to the toilet seat in such a way that the toilet seat may be lifted without requiring a person to come in contact with the toilet seat itself and is also constructed in such a way as to provide a more durable lift handle which even if subjected to abuse will not break off and therefore provide long term life.
2. DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Prior to the present invention, lifting handles were either attached to the toilet seat directly using screws or the like, or the lifting handle was molded in a single piece as part of the toilet seat. Additionally, lifting handles were typically made of a solid construction. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 1,999,555, to Adams, discloses a sanitary seat lift for a water closet bowl seat in which a solid handle is attached to a toilet seat by screws or other means. Similarly, U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,318,518, to Opperer; 2,236,576, to Loebner; 3,717,884, to Mantooth; 3,783,455, to Vanderbrook; 4,129,907, to Vaughn et al.; and 5,065,460, to Curtin, all disclose and teach that the lifting handle is directly secured to the toilet seat through the use of a screw or other similar mounting device. None of these prior art references, except for Currin, disclose the use of a flexible handle for lifting the toilet seat. However, with respect to the flexible handle of Currin, Currin teaches that the end of the flexible handle is secured to the side of the toilet seat through the use of a screw which when subjected to abuse could easily be broken away from the toilet seat by placing direct pressure on the base 19 with a force generated by a foot.
Thus, according to the prior art, the best, if not universal, means for securing the handle to the seat is to directly attach the lifting handle by use of a screw or the like, to the side or bottom of the toilet seat. Additionally, according to the prior art it is preferable to provide a lifting handle of solid construction. This can be a problem if a user stands on or kicks the handle in order to lift or drop the toilet seat. Additionally, these types of screwed on lifting handles are prone to creating stress fractures within the toilet seat and therefore tend to tear out from the seat. This is especially true if too large a force is applied. In this case either the rigid handle will be broken or the threaded handle will be torn from the toilet seat thereby destroying the toilet seat. Furthermore, the prior art handles do not operate in a fashion to provide a flexible lifting handle which passes through the toilet seat in order to provide an efficient and uniform lifting force while providing a flexible handle which resists breaking and is not screwed directly into the toilet seat.
In general, the prior art also teaches lifting handles which have a single point of contact between the handle and the toilet seat which concentrates the forces in the handle at the single point of contact. This tends to prematurely weaken the handle and the strength of the connection between the handle and seat thereby reducing the useful life of the handle and the toilet seat if abused, as indicated heretofore.
Thus, a sanitary flexible lifting handle for a toilet seat which is capable of operating without the above disadvantages is lacking in the prior art. In particular, the prior art does not disclose or suggest a sanitary lifting handle which is capable of efficiently and evenly transferring the lifting force to lift the toilet seat. Thus, there is a need for a sanitary flexible lifting handle for lifting and setting down the seat of a toilet, wherein the lifting handle is of a construction and is connected to the toilet seat in such a way as to resist breaking of the handle and to resist breaking the toilet seat when an excessive force is applied to the handle as in the case of an abuse by a user.